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Julia Davis, M.S. is an Investigative Journalist, a featured expert with the Atlantic Council’s Disinformation Portal. Julia created and operates the Russian Media Monitor, analyzing Russian state media in a broader context of the Kremlin’s propaganda tactics, with focus on the Kremlin’s hybrid warfare and foreign policy. Julia's reports have been featured by the Washington Post, the Daily Beast, Rolling Stone, Newsweek, CNN, MSNBC and other media outlets.

Disgraced former Head of OSC Scott Bloch finally sentenced

Some semblance of justice seemingly caught up with Scott J. Bloch, the disgraced former head of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). On March 30, 2011 he was finally sentenced for some of his criminal activities. After years of legal wrangling, Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson sentenced Bloch to one month in jail plus one year of unsupervised probation and 200 hours community service.

But wait, the Bloch saga is still not over. Bloch may be able to stay out of prison, while his sentence is being appealed. His attorney, William Sullivan said that he will file a motion to keep Bloch out of prison until the U.S. Court of Appeals considers his appeal. Robinson said she will consider this motion, along with a request that Bloch avoid the prison sentence altogether, by serving it out in home confinement instead.

Throughout these proceedings, Bloch’s attorneys and federal prosecutors have done their best to keep him out of prison. Yes, Bloch was aided by the Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecutors, whose job it is to represent the interests of the American taxpayers. No one seemed concerned with securing justice for the benefit of numerous whistleblowers, whose lives and careers were wrecked because of Bloch’s lackluster performance as the former head of the beleaguered Office of Special Counsel (OSC).

Bloch pleaded guilty to one count of criminal contempt of Congress in April 2010 -- a misdemeanor that carries a sentence of up to 6 months in prison. Instead of charging Bloch with perjury, obstruction of justice and destruction of evidence, DOJ prosecutors have labored together with his defense attorneys to ensure that he gets away with mere probation. One would be hard-pressed to find an instance of the DOJ rushing to the defense of an innocent Defendant or a whistleblower unjustly facing selective and malicious prosecution. In those instances, government prosecutors throw all of the might of the U.S. government to crush their intended victims. This case was and continues to be astonishingly different.

Under Bloch’s notorious leadership, the historically inept OSC reached new lows. In addition to his bigotry, Bloch became infamous for being the absolute antithesis of what the OSC was supposed to represent. Bloch was accused of the following:

Deleting hundreds of files pertaining to whistleblowing disclosures and complaints of retaliation and reprisal;

Rolling back protections for federal employees against discrimination based on sexual orientation;

Engaging in retaliatory activities against OSC staffers who opposed his wrongdoing;

Assigning interns to issue closure letters in hundreds of whistleblower complaints without investigation;

Intimidating OSC employees from cooperating with government investigators;

Misusing prosecutorial power for political purposes;

Bloch reassigned his perceived critics within the OSC to field offices across the country – giving them 10 days to accept, or else they'd be fired (a typical act of retaliation and reprisals, as per the notorious Malek Manual);

The OSC under Bloch rarely recognized legitimate whistleblowers, typically doing so only when the whistleblower has already prevailed elsewhere, especially if the case received media coverage.

Under Bloch’s leadership, employment rights attorneys were advising their clients to submit their complaints to the OSC simply “to obtain the pro forma closure letter” as it was guaranteed that the OSC would not investigate or take action in any complaints.

As casualties of Bloch’s wrongdoing, many have lost their jobs and life savings, defending themselves from retaliatory investigations, malicious prosecutions, baseless transfers, unwarranted demotions, unjustified firings and other reprisals by their respective government agencies.

Unlike his victims, Bloch had no trouble moving on with his life. He is currently working as an employment attorney at the Tarone & McLaughlin LLP law firm in our nation’s capitol. It remains to be seen whether Bloch’s law license will be revoked by the District of Columbia Bar Association as the result of the recent sentencing. He was granted a law license because the staff of a DC court “didn't notice that he is under criminal investigation by the FBI”.

Tarone & McLaughlin website boasts that Bloch and his team “obtained settlement of a national consumer class action against General Motors (in re Dex Cool) that was valued at $300 million”. Even as a gainfully employed attorney, Bloch apparently found “the crushing legal burden of government investigators, prosecutors… and inspectors general… far too expensive for an ordinary citizen like Mr. Bloch to handle financially on his own.”

Bloch’s victims know just how crushing such a legal burden can be, especially when it arises out of unlawful retaliation, malicious prosecutions and retaliatory investigations. To the contrary, in Bloch’s case, not only did he get away with pleading to a lesser offense, but he also brazenly expects American taxpayers to chip in for his defense. A website entitled “Scott Bloch Legal Defense Trust” encourages donations from the American public to help Bloch with his legal defense fees.

Indeed, American taxpayers have already paid for Scott Bloch’s defense, since the DOJ prosecutors have been fighting for his freedom throughout the duration of his case.

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Julia Davis, M.S. is an American writer, producer in the film and television industry, member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, Women In Film and the Screen Actors Guild. Julia is a Russian Media analyst. She specializes in exposing Russian propaganda tactics, with focus on the Kremlin’s hybrid warfare and foreign policy. Julia is a featured expert with the Atlantic Council’s Disinformation Portal – an interactive online portal and guide to the Kremlin’s information war.
Julia created and operates the Russian Media Monitor, analyzing Russian state media in broader context of the Kremlin’s information warfare.